Best of Honor
by Scribbleness
Summary: Planning a wedding is fun and exciting, but NEVER without drama. Rinoa, the maid of honor, was the young niece of the groom's least favorite person, Sephiroth. On the other hand, Squall, the best man, was the groom's cousin and "'lil bro." With the wedding only two months away, how will they be able to manage the event and themselves without hell breaking loose?
1. Engagement

**Disclaimer** : Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

 **Author's Note:** Heya! Here's another idea from one of my conversations with my friend MonMonCandie years ago that I wanted to pursue. And now I'm actually doing it. I just want to work on something that is fun because my other future fics will be a little darker. This will give some relief both to you and me. So as usual, I hope you enjoy this story, and your reviews will be very much appreciated. They will help me improve my writing skills, and that's always good news. Sorry for my pointless blabber, it's kinda getting late.

* * *

He took one last look at the ring while sitting on top of the hill where they usually met. The diamond shone brightly against the moonlight like the stars in the nightsky above him. It was a defining moment— would she accept him? To be with for the rest of their lives? He sure hoped she did, or else his last resort would be throwing the ring out in the open ocean to be forgotten.

The crunching sound of grass made him close the small black box and hastily placed it inside his pocket. Pretending he didn't hear anything, he kept on looking at the sky, listening at the steps as they came closer. A moment later, he felt her warm soft lips brushing against his, and when she pulled away, her round crimson eyes met his sky-blue ones. He smiled.

"Come here often?" he said.

She giggled. "You have no idea."

She sat beside him and rested her head against his shoulder. He nuzzled his nose against her black locks that smelled like fruits and cinnamon. Should he wait a little longer and enjoy being with her while he still could?

"So!" she lifted her head up and faced him. "What's up?"

She could tell by his smile that he was nervous. She tilted her head to her side. "Cloud?"

"Yes?" he forced a smile again.

"Seriously, what's up?"

His eyes fell on his lap. Even then, his yellow blonde hair managed to stay up and spiky. "I…" he couldn't spit it out. No matter how often he practiced his spiel, he still couldn't manage to ask her the critical question. For the first time in his life, he was a coward.

She looked at him with anticipation. Suspense was already eating her inside.

"Tifa," he finally managed to say as he looked at her. "are you still happy with me?"

Stupid question, but at least he was going somewhere.

She gave him a quizzical look. "Of course, Cloud. Why would you ask something like that?"

His cheeks suddenly began to feel warm. "Uhm, Tifa…"

"Yes?"

His instincts of proper etiquette suddenly kicked in and overcame his logic. He knelt on one knee his head still bowing. "Isn't this how they do it?" he murmured.

Tifa's eyes widened. "Cloud?" She gave him a nervous laugh. "What are you doing?"

He lifted his hands and opened the small black box. This was definitely not how he had planned this. He was expecting to spend at least thirty minutes of convincing and working her up to ensure that she would say yes, yet not even ten minutes after her arrival, he was already asking for her hand.

Her heart skipped a beat when he knelt down, and now it was furiously beating against her chest. Body heat was rising to her cheeks as she looked at him with a diamond ring in his hands. She inhaled sharply and placed a hand over her mouth.

"Tifa… Will you—?"

"Is this…" she cut him. "for real?"

He looked at her. "Yes."

She was sobbing at this point. "Oh Cloud."

"Will you?"

"Yes! A thousand more yes!" she cried as she hugged him.

"Thank you Tifa." he said as he pulled her closer in his arms. "I love you."

"I love you too. Forever and ever."

* * *

" _I'm engaged!_ "

"To Cloud?"

" _Of course, silly!_ "

"Wow!" Rinoa exclaimed. "I'm so happy for you, Teef!"

" _Thank you! Seriously, I cannot wait for you to meet him!_ "

"Me neither!" Rinoa fell on her couch. Her best friend, whom she hadn't seen for almost two years since she moved to Deling for university, was already getting married. And she hadn't met him yet to be interrogated or scrutinized. It suddenly sank into her that her best friend, her sister for most of her life, was getting married to someone who was stranger to her no matter how many stories she had heard about this Cloud. "Wow… You're really getting married."

" _I know! And guess what?_ "

"What?"

" _You're my maid of honor!_ "

Rinoa paused. "Hyne, wow Teef!"

" _Yes! So, I need you to get your butt here in Midgar as soon as you can, okay? So much catching up to do and so much to talk about!_ "

"I know!" Rinoa instinctively made a nervous smile.

" _And you definitely have to meet him_."

"I know. Honestly, it's hard to imagine you with someone I never even met. I hope he's as good as you told me he is."

" _He's perfect, Rin. The best one around for me, I swear._ "

Rinoa smiled. "Okay, if you say so. When do you need me there?"

" _Tomorrow if possible._ "

"Tomorro- Tifa, when exactly are you getting married?"

" _In two months!_ "

"What?!"

" _You heard me. Two months, Rinoa. So I really need you here. Dresses and venues and everything! Cloud's sisters Serah and Claire will be helping us out._ "

"Tifa, that's too soon."

" _Isn't that your semester break or something._ "

"Yeah, it is."

" _So you can make it, right?_ "

"No that's not what I meant." Rinoa took a deep breath. "Tifa, don't you think two months of preparation for the wedding is too short?"

" _Like I said, there's Serah, Claire, and the bridal party too. Also, Cloud has his cousin Squall and his groomsmen to help us out, so there's that._ "

Rinoa closed her eyes. "Okay Tifa. I'll be taking the train tomorrow morning, so I think I'll be there by tomorrow evening. That should be fine, right?"

" _Yes! Just, let me know what time and I'll come pick you up, okay?_ "

"It's alright, Teef. My uncle will pick me up."

" _Oh. Right. So, can we meet after, then?_ "

"Yeah. I'll let you know as soon as I can. Or maybe we can meet the day after."

" _Can't wait to see you!_ "

Rinoa smiled. "Me too. But we'll be rushing things and that's never good. So we'll meet Tuesday?"

" _Okay Rin. Tuesday. Just get here already!_ "

"Alright. Alright."

" _See you soon Rin!_ "

"Goodnight, Teef."

And she finally hung up.

Rinoa massaged her temple. That was some big news. Tifa getting married, and it was only a year ago when she started seeing this Cloud. Just after one year of courtship, they're already tying the knot? How could they be that sure?

She was on the look for love herself, but she was no hopeless romantic. She knew things like this take time, and this would entail strong commitment. Cloud would be with her for the rest of her life. Did she already know him _that_ well?

Rinoa stood up and walked back and forth across her lounge room. She trusted Tifa's decision, but she just didn't want Tifa to get hurt either.

 _I guess she already knows what she's doing,_ she convinced herself. She always looked up at Tifa as her big sister anyway. She had always been a good decision-maker, so what could happen?

* * *

"Here's your order, Sir."

Cloud nodded at the waitress who placed his plate of waffles and hash browns in front of him. "Thank you." He sliced through the hash browns first and took a bite. While still focused on his meal, he caught a glimpse of a figure in black leather sit in front of him. "Hey, Squall."

His newly-arrived companion didn't reply.

Cloud finally looked up. "Hungry?"

Squall shook his head. "No."

"Join me. Eat."

Squall sighed and signaled for the waitress. He told her his regular: chocolate porridge and hotdogs.

Cloud placed his utensils down. "I'm getting married."

Squall's lips slightly upturned. "Congratulations."

"You're the best man."

He frowned. "What?"

"You heard me. You're best man."

"Goodbye Cloud." Squall stood up.

"Claire expects you to be there."

Squall paused. "This was her idea, isnt' it?"

"Nope. It was mine. She knew you'd turn it down, and when that happens, she told me she'd make sure you'd stand by me when Tifa and I say our vows."

Squall sighed before turning back to Cloud with narrowed eyes. He sat down again.

Cloud smirked. "She knew that would work."

Squall looked away. "Why don't you get Zack?"

"Blood is thicker than water. You know me better than he does, and I do too with you. That's what happens when we grew up together, cousin. You're like a little bro to me."

Squall couldn't argue with that. "I don't know what a best man does at weddings." It was true. He'd always rather keep to himself and his family, that was why he was never invited to become part of a wedding entourage. He witnessed a few wedding ceremonies, but he didn't know, nor he cared to know, what being a best man meant.

"Zack will still be there, he'll help you through." Cloud replied. "He's one of the groomsmen."

"I don't know what groomsmen do either."

"Groom's personal assistants and bodyguards. When something is needed at the wedding, they make sure to go get it. When anyone tries anything funny, they make sure to take care of it."

"So what do you need a best man for?"

"You'll be my main guy." said Cloud. "You're the leader of the groomsmen."

 _I was never much good of a leader,_ Squall thought.

The waitress arrived with Squall's order and he nodded at her in thanks. Cloud allowed Squall to mix his porridge with all the time he needed to let the thought sink in before he dropped another bomb.

"Also," Cloud shifted on his seat and leaned closer on the table. "You'll be working closely with the maid of honor."

Squall's eyes shot up at his cousin.

Cloud grinned. "What's wrong, Squall?" he said teasingly.

He looked away. "Nothing."

"Is someone going to be jealous?"

"I'm not seeing anyone."

Cloud chuckled. "I know. Can't imagine that for the life of me."

"Whatever. Who's the maid of honor?"

"Tifa's best friend, Rinoa. I never met her, but I heard she was about your age. She's a senior at a university in Deling." Cloud leaned back. "She's arriving from Deling on Tuesday. We're meeting up with her and Tifa."

"Why?"

Cloud shrugged. "That's what Tifa wanted. So everyone will be 'well-coordinated.'"

"Don't tell me it's going to be one of her parties."

"It _is_ one of those parties."

Squall rolled his eyes. "Right."

"I'm not going to bring you there if it's not going to be good. Besides, it's my engagement party. Best man or not, you'll be there."

Squall shrugged. "Can't argue with that."

Cloud smiled. "Good. So we'll see you— 6:00 pm on Tuesday."

Squall nodded.

Cloud took a gulp from his glass of water. "Oh, and uh, Quistis will be there. Just want to let you know."

Squall's eyes widened. "Why?!"

"One of the bridesmaids. Tifa got her because she's apparently really good at organizing and planning."

"This is a huge mess you're getting me into, _cousin_." Squall replied stressing on the last word.

Cloud shrugged. "Sorry, Squall. It's been a long time, right? Like, what, two years? Besides, it's not like you led her on."

 _I didn't, but she thought I did_ , Squall replied mentally. _He_ became the jerk for turning down a girl's advances, and she remembered him that way. Cloud was right, at least he did not make her expect anything more following her confession of attraction to him. Before anything even started, he put an end to it the easy way — by not talking to her. The bad part of it was she thought he was just not giving her a clear answer because he was giving the possibilities a chance. It was until that one incident when she had too much to drink and he had to _literally_ push her away from an almost-kiss. Unfortunately, only then did she get the message.

"You know that I've been avoiding her." Squall said through gritted teeth.

"She's Tifa's friend."

Squall glared at him.

"What do you want me to do?" Cloud asked.

Squall didn't reply and crossed his arms again.

The older one smirked. "You may be a little bro to me, but you're a big boy now. You'll manage."

* * *

The five-hour trip wasn't long enough for Rinoa's thoughts about the upcoming wedding. She knew this day would come— Tifa getting married and she would be there. But it seemed only yesterday when they were playing fake battles against an imaginary Ifrit in her uncle's abandoned garden shed back in Midgar. How fast time flew and she was still single without a potential boyfriend in sight. She may have seen a couple of guys back in Deling, but they were nothing more than dinner friends. And the ones she was _really_ interested in never seemed to notice her.

She was no hopeless romantic. But she often wondered when her turn would be.

" **We're leaving Gongaga Station. Next stop, Midgar Station.** "

Rinoa's head perked up. Midgar should only be fifteen minutes away. She rubbed her face to wake herself up and gathered her black leather satchel. When they finally arrived in Midgar, she pulled her bag from the luggage compartment and exited the train. Out in the station, she spotted the familiar long silver hair belonging to a tall, pale man in leather suit. He was looking over the crowd and he smiled at her.

Rinoa smiled back and sprinted to him, pulling her luggage behind her. "Uncle Seph!" she called as she neared him and pulled him into a hug.

"Hey Rin." her uncle greeted back, his delight masked by his deep voice. "Glad to have you back."

Rinoa pulled away and he took her luggage. "I see you haven't cut your hair yet. I'm getting a little jealous."

He smirked. "This is my trademark look. This is how I want my enemies to know Sephiroth will be the last person they will ever see."

"Yikes."

"And you've gotten thinner."

"Thanks Uncle."

"Were you eating right?"

"When I could afford it."

Sephiroth stopped. "Wasn't the allowance I sent you monthly enough?"

Rinoa paused with her uncle and her shoulders dropped. "I'm kidding. Sorry. It's just that, with all the uni stuff, I barely find the time to go out and eat _actual_ food."

"I told you you should've gone to Balamb Garden instead. It's closer to home and you don't need a dorm to get there. And food will not be a problem."

"I know, but Deling Uni offers the best curriculum for Education. Also, I'm not planning to become a mercenary."

"You have every potential to be."

"Thanks, Uncle. But that's not what I want."

A moment passed between them.

Sephiroth was the first to talk. "I suppose becoming an educator is safer than being a mercenary."

Rinoa smiled. Finally, he was beginning to appreciate the course she took, even if his reaction was not how she imagined. "See! We're getting there. Teaching is fun! Yey!"

"Yey." Sephiroth imitated. "So, Tifa's getting married?"

"Yes!"

"To who?"

"This Cloud guy she told me about, but I never met him."

Sephiroth's eye twitched. "Cloud, huh. I know a guy named Cloud."

"Really? How?"

"Someone who works with me at Shinra. Just one of my least favorite SOLDIERs there."

"Oh. I don't know if this is the same Cloud. His last name was like… Uhm…" Rinoa placed an index finger on her lips. "Sky? Fly? Thrive?"

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "Cloud Strife."

"Yeah! Cloud Strife. That's who's Tifa's going to mar-" Rinoa's eyes widened in her sudden realization. "Oh."

"Don't worry. I won't take it against Tifa." said Sephiroth as he placed Rinoa's luggage inside the trunk of his large black jeep.

Rinoa pulled herself to the passenger's seat. "That would be unfair, wouldn't it."

"I suppose so." Sephiroth locked their doors and started the engine. His emerald eyes were looking straight ahead. "I don't trust his family though."

Rinoa stiffened. Tifa just told her she would be working with Cloud's sisters and his cousin. "Why not?"

"Gut feeling." Sephiroth shifted his gears and they were moving away from the train station's parking and into the streets of Midgar. Home, that's what it was to Rinoa, where old cherished memories were held. And she could tell from her uncle's welcome that the new ones would be very interesting.


	2. The Entourage

**Disclaimer** : Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

 **Author's Note** : Shoutout to **seranoa** because this has Serah and Rinoa in it! Also, to **Angel-Wings Naya** for not giving up on my stories! Also, to **Rebekka** who tirelessly writes me reviews! Thank you so so much! I hope you'll enjoy this one!

* * *

Her room was how she remembered it: her clothes scattered on her bed with a trail leading to her cabinet, half-open books on her desk, and shoes not in their proper places. Everything was still how she left them, only dustier. Rinoa shook her head. Even when they knew she would be staying, they didn't even bother cleaning her room for her.

 _You can't really trust a man to clean a house._

"We didn't move your things since you left. I like remembering you this way." Sephiroth said behind her.

Rinoa turned around and smiled. "Thanks Uncle Seph."

Her uncle returned with a soft smile. "Well," he turned around. "I hope you don't mind a take-out from Kisaragi Teriyaki."

Rinoa shrugged. "Sounds great. I kinda miss their teriyaki."

"Chicken's your favorite, right?"

Rinoa nodded. "Yes, please!"

They turned their attention to the sound of the front door opening and closing. "Seph?"

Sephiroth jerked his head towards the stairs. "Cid's here."

"Oh." Rinoa headed down and peeked through the railings. Her legally adoptive brother was looking up and greeted her with a toothed smile.

"Rin!"

"Cid!" called Rinoa as she embraced him. She reached for his black hair and ruffled it. "How is my _Commander_ Cid Raines?" she said in a teasing tone while stretching his eyelids to examine his grey orbs.

Cid chuckled and pushed her hands away. "Hey! How'd you know?"

"You're the only person in this house who never called."

He gave her a disbelieving look. " _I_ didn't call? Me? _You_ should call!"

Rinoa placed her hands on her hips. " _Excuuuse_ me _?_ I always call Uncle Seph!"

Cid chuckled and ruffled Rinoa's ebony locks. "Still have that brown highlights, huh."

"Why do you always call them highlights? They just grew out. _Naturally."_

"Heh. Right." He threw himself on their black leather couch. "So what brings my favorite girl here?"

"Tifa's getting married."

"So I've heard. To who?"

"Cloud Strife."

Cid pursed his lips and cocked his head to one side. "Seph hates that Cloud."

"Yeah, that's what he told me. Why?"

Cid shrugged. "Even I don't know. Never even met him to give me the slightest idea why."

"Kisaragi Teriyaki is arriving in thirty minutes." Sephiroth interrupted from the study room. He pointed his cellphone in his hand to Cid. "Be on the lookout."

Cid gave a relaxed salute. "Roger that."

"I'm going upstairs and clean my room, because nobody here even _cared_ to do it for me."

Cid nodded his head smugly. "That's right."

* * *

Rinoa decided to take a rest for the whole morning of Tuesday and left her bed only for lunch. Sephiroth and Cid have already gone to their workplaces and left Rinoa a note on the counter.

" **Didn't wake you anymore. We went to work. Lunch is in the fridge**."

She opened the fridge and saw a transparent container labelled "Rinoa" with soft tacos inside. After heating them in the microwave, she took them with her to the dining table. She checked her phone, taking her time between bites.

There were seven missed calls from Tifa, and just one message from her: " **Call me!** "

Taking a deep breath, Rinoa dialled Tifa's number, but even she wasn't answering. Rinoa dismissed it as the bride's busy preparations for that night's dinner party. She finished her food and headed to her bedroom to fix herself with a hot shower and make-up before calling a taxi by 5 o'clock.

She still remembered clearly where Tifa's house was and fluently gave the directions to the driver. When they arrived twenty minutes later, she gazed in admiration at Tifa's new home. Even when two year had passed and changes happened, she still knew it was the same house she used to visit year ago. Peach tiles adorned her roof where the distinct orange metal used to be, and her brown wooden walls were replaced with white wooden panels. The color combination illuminated against the night with the yellow lights emitting from the windows.

Rinoa paid the taxi driver her fare with his due tip and exited the vehicle. She felt the nostalgic cool air of the night on her legs exposed by her pencil-cut skirt. She adjusted her blue blazer hanging on her arm as she examined Tifa's house. Lights were bright inside, and figures were moving around hastily for, what Rinoa would think, last-minute preparations for the party. Rinoa slipped into her blazer and pressed the doorbell.

A few seconds later, Cloud opened the door.

Rinoa gave a nervous wave. "Hello."

Cloud's curious expression softened with a smile. "You must be Rinoa."

"Yeah, I'm Tifa's—"

"Best friend." He reached out a hand. "I'm Cloud."

Rinoa shook it and wore a wider smile. "We've finally met! I've heard so much about you!"

Cloud returned a smile. "Likewise."

"Who is it?" Rinoa and Cloud looked inside the house at the sound of Tifa's hurried voice. She emerged from the kitchen in a knee-length emerald dress beneath a red apron. Rinoa giggled inwardly at the sight of the Christmas-like motif of her best friend's fashion choice. Tifa grew a big smile and playfully skipped to her with both arms reaching forward. She pulled Rinoa into an embrace which was reciprocated with a tighter one.

"Rinoa! Finally!" Tifa said.

"I'll go check the kitchen." Cloud excused himself.

"Okay." Tifa replied while still holding on to Rinoa.

Rinoa pulled away and scanned Tifa. "Look at you! Blooming bride!"

"And you!" Tifa tucked Rinoa's hair behind her ear. "You're a big girl now!" she pulled Rinoa's wrist and lead her into the house. "Come, I want you to meet Claire."

"Okay." Rinoa replied while following Tifa into her dining room. Stacking the white porcelain plates on the table was a woman with pinkish fair skin and rose-colored hair gathered to her left shoulder in long curls. The other half was layered and cut above her shoulder, making her look like she had two different hairstyles from each side. Her features are uncannily similar to Cloud's, and if someone didn't know any better, they'd think they were twins. She looked up at Rinoa.

Tifa pulled her closer to the woman. "Rinoa, this is Claire, Cloud's younger sister."

Claire nodded at Rinoa with a small smile. "How have you been?"

Rinoa was still dazzled by Claire's countenance. "Wow, you're really pretty!"

Claire raised her eyebrows and chuckled while glancing at Tifa then back to Rinoa. "Thank you."

"She's one of my bridesmaids that I told you about. She'll help us out."

"Yeah. Been helping Tifa since the big announcement."

Rinoa smiled, honestly glad someone had Tifa's back in her absence. "I was quite surprised actually, when Tifa called me about the engagement. It's hard to imagine her getting married already."

Claire smirked. "I was amazed Cloud even started dating someone at all. The engagement was a pleasant surprise, and it was the only thing we were waiting for. I'm sure you can trust Tifa with Cloud. Not sure about my brother."

Rinoa laughed, her hands stretching against the metal dining chair in front of her. "Oh, you don't mean that."

Claire shrugged, smiling between Tifa and Rinoa while placing the dinner utensils on a wooden container beside the plates and the stockpile of napkins.

Rinoa let go of the chair. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"I'll go check Cloud. You guys can relax now." Tifa said while sprinting back into the kitchen.

Claire sat on the nearest chair and Rinoa followed, sitting across her. A moment later, relaxing music filled the room and Rinoa looked around. She thought it was going to be a party, and she was imagining loud music, dark room with dancing colored lights, and drinks. However, the atmosphere was telling her it was going to be nothing more than a casual dinner.

Claire seemed to have read her expression. "Tifa and Cloud just wanted the whole entourage to know bond over a simple dinner. Nothing too party-ish, thank goodness."

"Oh." Rinoa replied, looking at her sleeveless top glittered with brown and black sequins and compared it to Claire's sleek white long sleeves and black slacks. "I may have been overdressed for the occasion."

Claire shook her head. "Don't worry about it."

The doorbell rang.

Rinoa sat up and was about to leave when Claire stood. "I'll get it." She headed to the front door and Rinoa heard male voices greeting Claire and footsteps were coming closer.

"Rinoa is already here. You can wait with her in the dining room."

"Yeah, alright!" said one voice, which Rinoa quickly realized belonged to a blond man with a black tattoo on one side of his face. He seemed lively and jumping a little as he entered the room when his blue eyes stopped at Rinoa. "Oh, hi!"

Rinoa greeted back at whom Claire introduced as Zell. He was followed by three more men: a taller guy with darker blond hair named Seifer, an equally tall guy with long auburn hair tied in a ponytail named Irvine, and a bulkier guy with spiky black hair and sky-blue eyes named Zack, who was carrying a large circular plate of food concealed under a white plastic cover. All of them except for Zack seemed to be just her age. Rinoa stood up and shook each of their hands.

"They're Cloud's groomsmen." said Claire.

"Except Vincent's not here. He's also a groomsman." said Irvine.

Claire rolled her eyes. "Goodluck with that one."

"Maid of honor, huh?" Seifer said when they all sat down, looking at Rinoa. "So, you're Tifa's best friend."

"I heard you two grew up together." said Zack after placing the food on the table.

Rinoa nodded. "We met at the daycare when I was five, and she was nine. We used to play all the time, and we just kinda became like sisters."

"Nice." Zell nodded. "Where do you study?"

"Deling Uni. How about you guys?"

Irvine pointed a thumb at himself, Zell, and Seifer. "The three of us, and Squall if you've heard of him, are from Balamb Garden."

Zack raised his hand halfway. "No longer a student. Just a SOLDIER."

Rinoa gave a wide smile. "Wow. SOLDIER." just like her Uncle Seph, but she decided not to say anything.

"We can be SOLDIERs too, if we want." said Seifer. "There's a joint-program with the Garden and Shinra. That or we can stay in Balamb Garden to be SeeDs. Impressive huh?"

Rinoa nodded, trying to put a smile. "Yeah, _that's_ impressive." She tried to mask her unease, she couldn't give herself away. Of course she knew. She was supposed to be in Balamb Garden, studying how to do combat and battles. She knew the possibilities and opportunities that came with being a SeeD or a SOLDIER. But she couldn't let them know that she knew.

The doorbell rang again and everyone in the dining room turned to look at the front door's direction. Rinoa saw Claire walking to welcome the new visitors again. This time, she heard girls' louder voices greeting Claire, with matching crunching noise of papers and plastic bags. As their voices grew louder, Rinoa saw a girl with long, braided, chestnut hair and green eyes entering the dining room, carrying a basket of fruits.

"Hello!" she greeted as she placed the basket on the buffet table. She scanned the room and her eyes fell on Zack. She approached him and hugged him from behind.

"Rinoa," Zack called. "this is my girlfriend Aerith. Aerith, Rinoa."

Rinoa stood up and reached for Aerith's hand. "Pleased to meet you."

Aerith responded with the most beautiful smile Rinoa had ever seen from a girl. "Me too. Pleased to finally meet you."

"Rinoa, this is Selphie," Claire pointed at the girls with springy brown hair, "and Quistis." she said pointing at a gorgeous girl with rose-blond hair and spectacles who nodded at her. "They're bridesmaids too, and Balamb Gardeners."

Quistis giggled at Claire's "gardeners."

"Hi Rinoa!" Selphie greeted excitedly, bouncing as she approached Rinoa and hugged her. Stunned, Rinoa instinctively hugged back. She just met her but she was too friendly for words, breaking the ice with force. Selphie let go and looked around the room. "Where's Serah?"

"She'll be here soon. They're already in Fisherman's Horizon." Claire replied.

"They?" asked Irvine.

Claire rolled her eyes. "With her boyfriend, Snow."

"Well, Fisherman's Horizon's not too far." said Quistis, trying to change the subject. Rinoa noticed that Seifer had been eyeing Quistis like some valuable jewelry he was about to steal since she arrived.

The front door opened again and Claire looked over the next visitor. "Oh, Squall's here."

Quistis stiffened on her spot, her blue orbs staring blankly at the dining table.

Squall entered the room, and the maid of honor quickly marked him as the "lean mean" simply because, for one, she could trace his years of exercise beneath his dirty-white v-neck shirt, and secondly, his towering height made his sharp features even more, well, intimidating. His fierce and cold blue eyes stood out, almost hidden behind his unruly brown hair which only made Rinoa more curious about him. She could tell he was either shy or just plain asocial, with his blank expression looking at them while everyone, save for Quistis, was greeting him.

 _So this is Cloud's cousin_ , Rinoa surmised inwardly.

When his eyes stopped at Aerith, who waved at him, his hardened emotion changed. Rinoa couldn't tell what it was, but his eyes were betraying him for something. Was it unease? Guilt? Shock?

He rigidly nodded once again and walked to a chair near Claire's. The older cousin suddenly placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed him towards Rinoa. He gave Claire an annoyed look while quickly taking his steps forward.

"Squall, I want you to meet Rinoa, the maid of honor." said Claire when they stopped in front of Rinoa, who tried to smile while she gaped at his frown-like appearance.

"Rinoa, this is our cousin, Squall. He's Cloud's best man."

"Hello!" Rinoa gave him a small wave.

Squall's expression softened and nodded at her. "It's nice to meet you." he said tonelessly.

Still trying to read him, Rinoa was delayed in her reply. "Yeah, you too!"

Tifa, minus her apron, entered the room. "Good! everyone's here!"

Cloud was following behind her wearing black kitchen mittens and carrying a plate with a steaming baked pasta in it. He cocked his head towards the boys. "Go take the rest from the back."

Wasting no moment, all boys from the room stood up and entered the kitchen. One by one, they came back carrying a plate of roasted chicken, a large saucepan of soup, a bowl of salad, two baking trays of flavored bread, another tray of fruit tarts, and a box of caramel cake.

"Wow, that's way too many food for dinner." said Rinoa as she watched the dishes lined up on the table.

Aerith leaned closer to Rinoa on her side. "The boys will always look for more, especially at midnight."

Rinoa turned to look at Aerith. "Are you guys always like this?"

"No, not all the time. Just on special occasions like birthdays, promotions. You know, the ones worthy of celebrations."

"Let's eat!" Zell announced.

* * *

The food was spectacular, to say the very least. It had been a while since Rinoa had a feast like she did at Tifa's get-together dinner. The welcome and the chats she made with everyone added to the enjoyable spirit and excitement in Tifa's wedding preparations. It was really how she expected this event would turn out— interesting, intriguing, and fun.

Rinoa took a glance at Squall, who was leaning against the farther corner in the room, a glass of raspberry juice in his hand, and his expression unchanging. He pushed himself up and left the room, having Cloud's attention whose gaze followed him inquisitively.

He sat on the couch in the living room, twirling his glass, watching the red liquid dance along. When he got there, Aerith looked at him, waved at him, while Zack was in her arms. She didn't know what he felt about her, and Squall doubted even he knew what he felt about her either. But out of all the people in the room, he cared what she thought about him the most.

He placed the glass on the coffee table in front of him. Squall thought he already managed to pull himself together when Aerith was around, but her bright green eyes was looking right through him, understanding him. That was probably why she always knew the right words to tell him. She was neither intimidated nor scared when she approached him. Maybe that was because she was older than him by two years? Matured enough to know better than being intimidated by a teenage mercenary in the making. She never complimented him, nor expressed any interest like any other girls who tried to decode him with annoying questions, and he was really curious what she saw in Zack. Maybe it was his personality that brightened her days, his determination to be a hero, his unwavering confidence, or his natural ability to stand out.

Squall shook his head. He definitely wasn't going to ever go out of his way and become someone like Zack just to impress her or anyone else. _Whatever she thinks of me doesn't really matter,_ he convinced himself. _It wasn't like she was with me all the time for me to even try._

"Squall?"

Squall broke away from his thoughts and looked up to see a faint silhouette of Quistis standing away from the entrance of the dining room.

 _Oh no._

His eyes fell on his lap, hoping she'd get the message to leave him alone.

Carefully, she stopped on her steps. "Squall, I just want to talk."

Deciding to humor her, Squall's eyes looked up at Quistis.

"About what happened," Quistis said in dejected voice. "I'm not blaming you for not liking me. And I'm not going to force you to like me anymore. It's not your fault, it's mine. I-I got too drunk and… desperate."

Squall stayed silent, his eyes still fixed on her just in case she tried anything funny again.

Quistis placed her hands around herself and rubbed her arms. "Look, it won't happen again. I promise. Let's just put a good closure on this, okay? For Tifa and Cloud?"

His eyes fell back to his lap.

"Squall?" Quistis called again after she didn't get any reply. Slowly, she began walking closer to Squall when there was another doorbell.

Squall swiftly stood up and faced the door, while a stunned Quistis looked behind him. He approached the door and opened it, greeted by his cousin Serah.

"Squall!" Serah gave a happy yelp and jumped onto Squall for a hug.

Squall's face softened and hugged Serah back. "Hey Serah."

 _Thank Hyne you're here._

Serah pulled away, and that was when Squall's eyes shifted to a taller man behind her who was riddled with muscles under his gray polo and long white coat. His light blond longish hair matched his stubble beard under his wide smile.

"Oh, this is Snow." Serah said, placing her arms around the man's waist. "My boyfriend."

Squall raised his eyebrows.

"Hey man." Snow held out his hand. Squall looked at it before shaking it firmly. Too firmly.

Serah beamed. "You guys already started?"

"Yeah." Squall replied. "They've been waiting for you inside." he held the door and let the two pass, Snow trailed behind Serah and gave Squall a friendly nod, which was met with a glare.

Selphie squealed when Serah entered the room and jumped onto her with a hug. Claire approached her sister with a smile and embraced her with one arm, while Tifa gave her a tighter hug. Cloud also pulled her in a one-arm embrace and roughly nuzzled his nose against her hair. Rinoa stared in wonder at Serah, who instantly illuminated the room with her presence. She had Claire's hair, only longer and tied in a side ponytail, rosy white complexion, and shape of her face. Her round blue eyes felt nicer the longer she stared at them, and her stature shorter, thinner, friendlier. Despite everything that she was, there was no doubt she was the youngest of the Strife siblings.

When Snow entered the room and everyone fell silent, he waved at everyone as if nothing was wrong.

"Guys, this is my boyfriend, Snow." Serah introduced.

Squall, who was following behind was wearing a deeper frown. Quistis timidly squeezed herself back into the gathering.

"Hi Snow!" Tifa approached him. "It's nice to finally meet you. Come, eat with us!"

"Wow, thanks!" Snow replied, walking towards the farthest chair in the room. Tifa cocked her eyebrows at Cloud, and he forced a smile while taking a deep breath. He approached Snow and asked him what else he needed like a good host of a groom that he was. The groomsmen started prodding him with questions, taking advantage of how busy Serah was talking to Claire.

"So, how did you guys meet?" Seifer asked.

"Yeah, Snow? How?" Cloud pressed.

"Well, you know she's a Uni student in Bodhum, right? An-"

"We know she's a student in Bodhum." said Cloud. Squall looked away to hide his smirk.

"Yeah. So, she's working on this paper about vigilante groups. So I helped her set an interview with our group, NORA."

"What's NORA?" Zell asked.

"It's our little code. Like, for a good cause. 'No Obligations, Rules, or Authority.'"

"That's a cause clear as day. I like it!" said Seifer.

Snow smiled and nodded. "Thanks!"

"So, what does NORA do?" Zack asked.

"We make sure order and peace are maintained in Bodhum." Snow replied.

"Doesn't Bodhum have the Sanctum to count on that?" Irvine asked, intending to clarify.

"Yeah, but they often mix politics before they take action. We just go do what needs to be done without questions asked."

 _Sounds reckless_ , Squall thought.

Rinoa was pretending to listen to Claire and Tifa's welcome for Serah, but she was eavesdropping at the boys' interrogation of Snow. So he's against the Sanctum? But her stepbrother was planning to work for the Sanctum as soon as his training with her uncle finishes in Shinra. Did this mean more are adding up to her list of people to be careful with?

"Rinoa," Claire called. "Serah is also taking an education course in Bodhum University."

"So you're Deliing Uni, huh?" Serah asked as she sat beside Rinoa.

Rinoa nodded. "Yeah. I'm a junior, majoring in secondary education."

"I thought about that too. But I decided I like children more. I'm also a junior, majoring in Child Development."

Rinoa shifted on her seat to face Serah. "Child Development was also my second choice!"

Selphie sat at the other side of Rinoa. "Why didn't you go to Balamb Garden, Serah?"

 _She was supposed to go to Balamb Garden too?_

"It's not what I want." Serah replied. "I like teaching. Teaching is more fun!"

The girl in the middle giggled. It mirrored what she told her uncle when they had this discussion the day before.

"What about you?" Rinoa faced Selphie. "Why did you go to Balamb Garden?"

"Because I like _explosing_ things into smithereeeens!"

Tifa took Squall by the wrist and pulled him to Rinoa. "Rin," she called to her best friend. "Since we need to plan this out as soon as possible, maybe you two can meet tomorrow? We need to book for our caterer as early as now. So," she let go of Squall's wrist. "I need you guys to moderate this. Okay?"

"Oh, okay." Rinoa quickly rummaged her bag for her phone. "Can I have your number Squall?"

Squall nodded. "May I borrow your phone?"

Rinoa handed her phone and he typed in his number. He gave the phone back. "Just send me a message."

"Okay." Rinoa began typing her message. "There." she smiled. "Should be with you now."

"Okay guys. Give me an update tomorrow, okay?" said Tifa.

"Okay." Rinoa replied. As soon as Tifa left them, Squall excused himself and left the dining room. Again. Rinoa wondered what exactly was he doing alone. She turned her attention back to the girls who prodded her with more questions while they stole bites of the night's banquet.

Squall went up to his room where his luggage still stood untouched beside the side-table. He threw himself on his bed and took out his phone. He still had to save Rinoa's number. He opened her message that drew a small smile on his face for the sheer purity of it.

" **There are many reasons to smile, Squall. Goodnight! ~ Rinoa** "


	3. The Caterer

**Disclaimer** : Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

 **Author's Note** : I seem to be more on the mood to write Best of Honor than CoD. I guess the lighthearted nature of this story kind of takes my stress away. Listening to music also becomes more fun while brainstorming on ideas for this fic. Writing becomes addicting and fun again! And of course, that's also because of the continued support of my readers with their reviews. No amount of thanks is ever enough to let you know how much I appreciate your feedback and appreciation of my work. Shoutout to **seranoa, Angel-Wings Naya, Senhorita Caroline, Guest Angel** (I hope this chapter will be clearer to you!) **,** and **Team Wingless**!

* * *

"Good morning, Commander." a man in black suit greeted when Cloud passed by at the pristine lobby of Shinra Corp. The blond SOLDIER nodded back with a smile as more people greeted him before he entered the elevator already occupied by three people. He selected the 21st floor and was about to press the closing button when he caught a glimpse of a familiar man with long silver hair at the front door.

Sephiroth strode on the same lobby, and a different man, also in black suit, hurriedly turned around and walked away while whispering "sorry" for _slightly_ blocking the way. Another female employee tensed on her spot with downcast eyes when Sephiroth passed before her. Realizing that he was going to ride the elevator, the three employees hastily left while murmuring "sorry" and avoiding Sephiroth's eyes. Cloud faintly tucked his lips to a side and held the open button, for courtesy's sake.

Sephiroth entered and stood by Cloud after pressing the button for the 25th floor. "Good morning, Strife."

"Good morning, General." Cloud replied without looking at his sole companion as the doors closed.

Shinra's midi music filled the silence between them before Sephiroth spoke. "Congratulations on the engagement."

"Thanks." Cloud replied. Then, he narrowed his eyes and tilted his head slightly in thought. He never told anyone in Shinra about the engagement yet. He wanted to do it at an acceptable time, preferably a month before the wedding. Besides, it was not in his character to drop hints about something important that he wanted to keep to himself, accidentally or not.

Cloud faced Sephiroth. "How did you know?"

Sephiroth made an amused tone against his throat. "I know Tifa." he said. "She's my niece's best friend."

Cloud raised his brows. "Rinoa?"

The other one smirked. "She came home late last night from your dinner party, Cloud. Or should I say, very early in the morning."

Cloud's eyes slightly widened. It was true, the dinner party lasted until wee hours in the morning and even he had to retire to his room he shared with Tifa before everyone left. He had to report for work the next day after all, and thank goodness for Tifa's perpetual understanding and talent to manage everything by herself. He didn't worry too much about the girls staying late at night, he had the boys to drive them home. Even Rinoa was driven home safely– Zell and Irvine made sure of it.

They both looked up at the electronic panel above the elevator door which showed that they have reached the 21st floor. Cloud briefly glanced at the still smirking Sephiroth before exiting the elevator. Sephiroth was his fiance's best friend's uncle? Rinoa? Cloud thought he heard Sephiroth talk about a niece during one of those rarest occasions he shared something about his life outside of Shinra, but he wasn't paying attention to even care.

"Who would've thought." he mused on his way to his desk. It was hard to guess that the heartily, friendly Rinoa was actually the niece of Shinra's finest General. The same one who made his working life more challenging and distasteful than it should be. And it seemed that he was her guardian too, judging from how well aware he was on what time she arrived home from the party. Home where Sephiroth _obviously_ lived. And he _knew_ so well who her best friend was. Were uncles supposed to know that? Shouldn't it be the parents' job to know that?

There was also that adoptive son of his, Cid Raines who, it seemed, also never spoke about Rinoa. Or did he? Cloud didn't pay attention either. The only thing he knew about Cid was how he just got promoted to Commander under Sephiroth's training and guidance. There was no politics in that, and Cloud knew– he witnessed how he performed. Cid's aptitude in combat and battle strategy impressed even the President of Shinra himself. Even then, he didn't learn his foster father's fear-provoking ways to deal with people and situations, and Cloud commended him for it. He was trained, or dare he say raised, to be well-disciplined. And he could say the same about Rinoa.

Cloud realized one thing: Sephiroth was far more experienced in parenthood than he could ever admit.

He also realized another thing: Tifa wasn't telling him everything.

* * *

Squall rubbed his palm against his face as he sat up on his bed, took a deep breath and a groan escaped him. He opened his eyes, blinking a few times before he could clearly see the early rays of sun seeping in between his curtains. It suddenly dawned to him that he was on vacation and it was technically the first day of his semester break at the Garden. He didn't know how much more preparation he had to do for Cloud's wedding, but he supposed the break they were given was just enough for the initial work they had to do _immediately_. Balamb Garden was only fifteen minutes away by train, and when break's over, he could return to Midgar anytime he was needed after his vacation for last minute errands. Thank Hyne for Cloud's great timing at his proposal.

And damn him for rushing things in two months.

He looked for his slippers before leaving his room and went down the stairs for the kitchen.

"Good morning Squall."

Squall looked up at the voice and saw Aerith sitting at the kitchen counter, a bowl of cereal in front of her. He blinked again a few times to make sure that it was indeed Aerith with him in the kitchen.

"You stayed for the night too?" he asked while approaching the fridge to get his loaf of bread and coconut jam and trying to wake up.

"Yeah." Aerith replied. "Me and Zack did."

"Where did you sleep?"

"In Claire's room."

"Oh." Squall replied as he spread the jam on his loaf. Of course Claire would rather go home to her new apartment.

"You didn't stay with us last night, Squall." Aerith said, almost inquiring.

Squall shrugged. "I just wanted to rest from the trip from Balamb."

"Did you still report for school yesterday?"

"Yeah. I had to. For last minute requirements."

Aerith took another spoonful of her breakfast. "Well, that's too bad. You missed a lot of Zell's interesting stories last night."

Squall snorted. "Let me guess, hotdog grill?"

It was Zell's famous story about how he thought hotdogs were supposed to be grilled. So when his mother bought some from the market, he placed them on their barbecue grill and set it on fire. The hotdogs were cooked, alright— to ashes.

Aerith laughed knowingly, and Squall bent his head slightly forward to hide his own smile. Ever since he met her when he was fifteen and she was 19, he suddenly became conscious about himself for some reason he didn't know: how he looked, how he moved, what he said. Was it puberty? If it was, it only took an Aerith to extract it out of him. He had heard of this crush-thing from his peers, but he wasn't sure if that was how he felt about Aerith. He felt lighter around her, because who didn't? She was like a breath of fresh air, or a flower in the slums.

But if it was a crush-thing, why was the feeling fading away over time? Wasn't it supposed to stay until it developed into what Cloud and Tifa had? Yes, he wanted to know what she found in Zack, but why didn't he mope around when he found out they were officially going out, unlike Zell when he discovered that who's-her-face of the library started dating Nida?

Was he really, in Seifer's own words, a "cold beast"?

He heard another set of footsteps approaching.

"Did Cloud go to work?" Zack asked, his spiky black hair still in its morning mess.

"Yeah." Aerith replied before receiving a kiss on a cheek from Zack. "He still had to wrap up some things before filing his leave. Well, that's what Tifa said."

Zack gave Squall a nod, who gave one back in kind. "By the way, where's Tifa?"

"She already left to check the venue for the reception at Bodhum." Aerith replied. She turned around to face Zack. "What do you want to eat?"

Zack peered over Squall's breakfast. "I want what he's having. And eggs." he opened the fridge and took out an egg. "You guys want eggs too?"

"No thanks." Aerith replied.

"How about you, Squall?" Zack asked while taking out another one. Without waiting for Squall's reply, he cracked both and proceeded to cook two scrambled eggs. "Growing boys need their daily eggs!"

Squall stared blankly at Zack and sighed. _Guess I'll wait for the egg._

 _And I'm not a growing boy._

"So, what are your plans today, Squall?" Aerith asked.

Squall swallowed a bite of his sandwich. "Look for a caterer with Rinoa."

"Ooh…" Zack said, with sorry in his tone. "Maybe you should start in Trabia. Lots of restaurants there that may have catering services."

Squall nodded. "Thanks. Will keep that in mind."

Aerith carried her empty bowl to the sink. "It's a lot of work– there's canvasing, negotiating, haggling… but I wouldn't worry. You will find a caterer in no time. Besides, it's fun to taste-test, if they'll allow it."

The youngest one narrowed his eyes. "That sounds very reassuring."

"It's still early and you have time to look up on your prospect caterers. Try trabiaeats dot com."

"I'd rather work on it with Rinoa." said Squall. She looked like she knew more about these things than he did.

Zack glanced up the wall clock by the kitchen's entrance. "Well in that case, maybe you should wait for another hour. Rinoa didn't exactly go home early last night."

"Or this morning." Aerith added.

Squall's brows furrowed. _Maybe you shouldn't have let it last until morning if there are still things to be done._

* * *

It took two hours before Rinoa finally replied to his text message. While waiting, Squall took his shower, brushed his teeth, threw on his black shirt, jeans, and black leather boots, and gussied himself up. He'd steal glances of his phone while reading a book on his bed, anticipating Rinoa's response to his suggestion to meet her in Trabia.

When his phone vibrated with Rinoa's message, Squall jerked and woke up.

Did he just fall asleep?

Panicked, he sat up and grabbed his phone.

" **Hi Squall! Hyne, I'm really sorry I didn't read your message sooner, I just woke up! Just give me 30 to prepare. Trabia, right? Are you already in Trabia? I'll meet you there!** "

Squall groaned. He should've taken Aerith's suggestion to canvas for good caterers online to have a headstart.

He responded " **OK** " as he grabbed his leather jacket and left his room.

* * *

Trabia was only a 20-minute ride by train and as expected, Squall still had to wait for another 40 minutes until Rinoa arrived. He took the liberty of browsing through the caterers around Trabia while killing the time in a pastry shop where he told Rinoa to meet him. The maid of honor sat in front of him, wearing sunglasses, and her hair still uncombed.

"I'm really, really sorry Squall." she said. "I set the alarm on my phone, but I slept on it again because I just needed the rest after last night's dinner."

Squall inwardly groused. He placed his phone into his pocket and stood up. "Let's not waste anymore time. We should start looking now."

Rinoa hurriedly stood up and followed him. "Where should we start?"

He pointed at one restaurant where staff wore white uniforms and black aprons. Squall read about it and critics were giving raving reviews about the food. "There."

Rinoa tried to keep up with his fast pace. "The Guadosalam Bistro?"

Squall remained silent while walking and opened the door for Rinoa once they reached the place. She took off her sunglasses, and that was when Squall noticed the bags under her eyes from the lack of sleep. They were approached by one of the staff.

"How may I help you, Sir, Ma'am?" he asked.

"We'd like to inquire about your catering services." Squall replied.

"Okay, Sir. Our manager will be able to answer your questions about that concern. This way, please." the staff said, extending his hand to lead Squall and Rinoa while walking ahead of them. They reached a wooden door with many dark creases and gold-plated linings. It creaked open and a smell of old peppermint cooled their nostrils. A big mahogany desk stood by the high, curtained window where an old man in orange suit sat. He looked up at Squall and Rinoa.

"Sir Jyscal, they're here to ask about our catering services." the staff said at the man.

Jyscal smiled and stood, motioning at the two chairs in front of him. "Please, please, take a seat." He returned to his chair and propped his hands on his table. "So, what can I help you with about our catering?"

Rinoa sat opposite from Squall. "We wanted to know what packages you have for weddings."

The manager nodded and reached for his drawers. He took out three green papers and handed them to the pair. "Here are the packages we can offer."

They scanned through the menus, and it didn't take long for Rinoa to widen her eyes and for Squall to narrow his.

"Sorry, but I just want to be clear on this." Rinoa said, facing the menu to Jyscal. "So, this 100,000 Gil here for your Princess Package is your entry level, right?"

"Yes, that is correct." Jyscal replied.

Rinoa forced a smile. "Great. Uhm, do you have any promos or discounts?"

"We have one for our Emperor Package." Jyscal replied, reaching for the menu with the highest price. "From 200,000 Gil, we'll give it to you for 150,000 Gil. That's practically the same as the mid-level package, only 7,000 Gil more." He leaned closer, cupping a hand to a side of his mouth. "We only offer this to very young couples."

"What do you mean?" Squall asked.

"Why, young people like you only deserve to experience your dream wedding! It only comes once in your whole lifetime, and we in Guadosalam Bistro fully support young love!"

"Oh! No no no no…" Rinoa said, shaking her hand upfront. She glanced at Squall, who was looking at her with a look where confusion and shock met. "We're not the ones getting married, that would be crazy." she added in between her nervous laugh.

"Oh!" Jyscal said, jolting back up on his chair. "I'm so sorry. You two seemed to be the most likely of couples, and— oh, how insensitive of me. I'm sorry for the misunderstanding."

Rinoa blushed. "Oh, no that's fine."

"So, to whom should I owe this visit?"

"Actually, I'm just the maid of honor, and he's the best man. It's my best friend's and his cousin's wedding, and they asked for our help to look for a caterer."

"I see, I see." Jyscal said.

"Same discount applies, right?" Squall asked.

"Well," Jyscal lifted his shoulders, swaying his head slowly side to side. "It's only for young couples, but… to make up for my mistake, then okay. I _might_ just give the discount to the bride and groom. Depending on the negotiations we'll have about the event."

"So, it's possible that they can't avail this discount you're offering us?" Rinoa asked.

"It will depend on what we'll talk about, but I cannot assure anything right now. How old are they?"

"They're both 23 years old."

"Ah." Jyscal replied, his hands playing with his stainless pen. "Not that young anymore, are they. In any case, like I said, I _might_ give them the discount instead."

Squall stood up. "We will talk about this with the bride and the groom. Thank you for your time."

Rinoa followed Squall with a stare before standing up and taking the green papers with her. "We'll show these to them. Thank you for having us."

"You're welcome." Jyscal said, his smile unfading.

Squall began to head for the door, and opened it again for Rinoa.

"Oh, and come back again to Guadosalam Bistro!" Jyscal called back.

Rinoa reviewed the papers in her hands once they were outside the restaurant, her eyes fixated on the total price of each package offered. "Well, considering the food, their offers aren't too bad, but…" she trailed off.

"You should not have told him the truth." said Squall.

Rinoa gave him a curious look. "About what?"

"About us getting married."

Rinoa's eyebrows met and shook her head slightly. "Why?"

Squall crossed his arms. "If he thinks we're getting married, then we could've have availed the discount and closed the deal."

Rinoa placed her hands on her hips. "And when he finds out about the truth?"

"There's no truth to be found out." Squall retorted. "Once it's been paid for, we can 'cancel' our imaginary wedding and tell them that a different couple is going to take the contract in our place."

"Then that would be cheating!"

"It's called strategizing to be cost-efficient." Squall retorted.

"Well," Rinoa looked around. "there are more caterers around, right?"

"We could've been finished by now."

Rinoa shot him a look. "Finished? We still have a long way to go!"

 _Exactly,_ Squall replied mentally.

"There. I see another restaurant." said Rinoa, pointing at another establishment with blue banner and golden tussels. "Let's go."

* * *

.

.

.

Five restaurants and fifteen menus later, Rinoa slumped over one of the benches by the fountain outside.

"Oh Hyne." she said. "I thought Gaudosalam Bistro was already expensive, but these!" she held up the flyers to her face. "These ones are too much! I mean, who would pay 500,000 Gil for just a day's meal?"

Squall collapsed beside Rinoa, brushing his hand through his hair.

Rinoa placed the papers into her bag and faced Squall. "What should we do now?"

Squall's eyes were back at their dark state, piercing Rinoa with a sideway look.

Rinoa frowned and pulled a slight pout. "What?"

Squall looked away. "Nothing."

"What's on your mind, Squall? Say it!"

Squall shot her another glare. _Since you asked for it…_

"It's already past three in the afternoon, the caterers are going to close soon, and we have already wasted most of the day without as much a prospect for a caterer." he retaliated.

"Okay, so judging from the look you're giving me, you're blaming _me_ on this?"

Squall looked away again.

"Oh, so that's how it's going to be, huh!" Rinoa stood up, stomped her feet in front of Squall and started talking when he faced her. "I admit I wasn't exactly early on this trip, but coming from Mr. Lean-Mean-Wall who lets me do all the talking, I'm not going to take the blame because, as far as I know, I'm the one doing the negotiating and work here! And you're not the only one who has the slightest right to be tired here. I'm tired too!"

Squall looked at her with an intrigued look.

Rinoa groaned. "What?"

"Lean… mean wall?"

Rinoa's mouth opened slightly, red color slowly creeping up her face. She huffed and turned around, stomping away from Squall. Reaching the fountain, she sat on its ledge, her arms crossed, and her back still at Squall's direction. She needed a time off from Squall and everything that he was. He was making her feel humiliated, embarrassed, like she was the cause of failure to him and herself. She was trying to make up for it, and he wasn't helping. What exactly was he expecting her to do? Starting early was always a better idea, but that wasn't exactly what happened, right? They had to make their adjustments for the situation until they could find a caterer. Blaming it on her made her feel alone when they should be working together to make it all easier.

She felt someone sit beside her and, looking sideways, she knew it was Squall. She looked away again, shifting against the ledge and fully facing her back on him.

Squall supported his elbows against his knees. He allowed a moment of silence to pass before sighing. "I didn't mean to sound accusing."

"Did you now?" Rinoa replied sharply, looking over her shoulder.

Squall looked back at her. "I just want to get this over with."

"Who doesn't?"

He silently sat up. "Look, there's another place we could look into— the Hawker's Row in Yusnaan. We can still make it there before 4:30." he said. "Are you coming?"

Rinoa looked over her shoulder again, her angry eyes travelled from Squall's head to toe. "Only if you stop being so mean."

"It depends."

She faced away again and crossed her arms again.

Squall's shoulders dropped and hung his head. "Okay. I will." he said. After waiting a moment for Rinoa's reply that never came, he stood up. "I'm going now. You can come if you want."

He watched Rinoa glare up at him and blinking a few times before finally standing up, dusted her navy blue skirt, and walked to the train station by his side.

* * *

Their fifteen-minute trip to Yusnaan was silent, but Squall noticed that Rinoa was starting to cool down from her meltdown earlier. Once they arrived, she marveled at the bright and colorful city of Yusnaan, each stall brimming her with excitement to explore.

"Wow…" she whispered. "I've been here only once, and this is not how I remember it. This is beautiful!"

A small smile grew on Squall's face as he watched Rinoa return to her old self. "We can visit them later if you want."

"Oh, yeah." said Rinoa. She turned to Squall. "So, where's Hawker's Row?"

Squall pointed at the opposite direction.

"Okay." she replied.

It wasn't hard to spot Hawker's Row— the further they walked, the stronger the smell of food grew, and the more they realized they haven't had their lunch yet.

"I'm suddenly hungry." said Rinoa.

"Me too." Squall replied. "We can eat wherever you want after this. The stalls don't usually close until late in the evening."

"I agree." Rinoa nodded. She scanned the stalls before them and her eyes fell on the sole enclosed restaurant with purple trimmings matched with a yellow signage that said "Besaid Eats".

Rinoa pointed at it. "That looks cute."

Squall narrowed his eyes on the pastel-colored place. "Looks painful."

She clamped her hands on his wrist and pulled him. "C'mon, it's worth a try!"

Squall pursed his lips while he allowed Rinoa to lead him into the restaurant. The wind chimes attached to its glass door tinkled upon entering, and the pair looked around. Low chatters mixed with the ambient music of guitar in the background, and bright lights were strategically set in the corners giving the place a relaxing glow. About five out of seven tables were occupied by custodians, each was served with dishes good for about five people.

"It smells new around here." Rinoa observed.

"Maybe it's a start-up eatery." Squall replied.

A girl with brown hair adorned with colorful beads on one side peeked behind the counter. "Oh!" she yelped and stood up, straightening her white floral dress. "Hello!" she bowed. "Table for two?"

"Oh, no." Rinoa replied. "We just want to know if you have catering services."

"We do!" the girl replied, lifting a small portion of the counter to let herself through. "Wait here." she entered a door beside the lavatory and went out a few seconds later, holding a set of three flyers. "Here." she said, handing them to Rinoa.

"Thank you." Rinoa replied, scanning the papers and giving two of them to Squall.

Squall studied the two papers with him side by side.

 _Hmmm… the prices are not too bad._

"The one in charge of catering is my co-owner, Paine. I'll go get her. Please, take a seat wherever you want." the girl said, entering the personnel door again. She appeared a few moments later with two girls behind her. One of them had silver hair and wore a stiff, formal face, while the other looked very bubbly, her long blond hair tied in a ponytail bounced with a variety of beads and ornaments.

"This is Paine." the girl said, gesturing at the more formal of the two. "And this is my cousin, Rikku."

"Heya!" Rikku waved.

Rinoa and Squall reached for their hands and shook each of them.

"I'm Rinoa, and this is Squall." said Rinoa. She turned to the other girl. "Sorry, I didn't get your name." she laughed nervously.

"I'm Yuna." she said as she sat down and everyone followed. She faced Paine. "They're here for our catering."

"For what occasion?" Pained asked, her voice hard and icy.

"Wedding." Squall replied, paralleling Paine's tone.

"Your wedding?" Rikku asked.

"Do you have discounts for young people too?" Rinoa asked.

"We don't have discounts of any kind." Paine replied.

"When's the wedding?" Yuna asked.

"In two months." Rinoa replied.

"That's close, but we can definitely work around that. The sooner the better."

"Your main courses look good." Squall commented, his eyes on the most expensive "Summoner's Package" which offered three appetizers, six main courses, five different desserts, and drinks of their choice.

Rinoa peeked on the paper in Squall's hand and turned back to the owners. "You sure there are no offered discounts on this?"

Yuna and Rikku looked at Paine.

"That's all we can give you." Paine replied.

"If you give this for 80,000, we'll close the deal." Squall said.

"I'm sorry, but 5,000 Gil worth of discount is too much."

Squall shook his head slightly. He was about to stand up and bid his farewell when Rinoa, whose eyes were still fixed on the flyer, spoke.

"Aww… it has Tifa's favorite paopu-stuffed ballotine." she said, pulling that pout again. "It's my favorite too."

He looked at her and turned back to Paine. "81,500 Gil."

"84,000." Pain shot back.

"82."

"84."

Squall took a deep breath and looked down again at the flyer on the table. He couldn't believe he was about to do it but, like what their Headmaster at the Garden always said about missions: "desperate times, desperate measures."

He looked up again, wearing his rare smile, his expression reduced from fierce to charming.

Paine inhaled sharply when Squall's azure eyes met hers.

Rinoa's eyes widened.

"I'd really hate to waste the potential of your good food to be realized by many." he said in his bedroom voice that he squeezed out of his system with all his might. "My cousin's wedding will have at least a hundred and fifty guests, and that's just the initial count. Many people will enjoy your food, and they will come back here for more. Of course, under my recommendation. And I can be pretty persuasive." he said the last word while only slightly parting his lips. "So let's settle it at 82. I'd really appreciate it." he winked. "What do you say?"

Rinoa's jaws dropped at Squall. Yuna's and Rikku's jaws dropped at Paine.

Paine's pale skin swiftly flashed with crimson color, almost blending with her red eyes. She tried to tear away from Squall's eyes, but couldn't seem to resist herself from looking… staring…

Gazing.

* * *

Rinoa looked at the contract in her hands to remind herself that they were able to get a caterer for the wedding at a price lower than they had anticipated. She couldn't believe Squall practically sold himself to close the discounted deal with Besaid Eats, and all it took was a wink.

It was already dark outside when they left the restaurant, and the yellow lights weaved with white from the hawkers and merchants were the primary sources of illumination in Yusnaan. As she stood in front of one of the stalls in Hawker's Row, she placed the contract back into her bag. Squall approached her carrying a white bag with two beef wraps and two crispy taters. Rinoa grabbed one of the wraps and took a bite.

"This is so good!" said Rinoa.

Squall nodded as he took another bite from his.

Rinoa rubbed off the excess sauce on one side of her lips with her thumb. "So, we made it huh."

"Yeah." Squall replied. "We did."

Rinoa nudged at Squall. "You did great back there, Squall. You were amazing." She smiled, her mouth still smudged with white sauce. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

Squall paused and faintly smiled back at her. "Thanks."


	4. The Wedding Planner

**Disclaimer** : Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

* * *

"We need to reconvene."

Quistis blinked in pure disbelief at Tifa's suggestion, holding her planner that she loaded with bridal brochures. She looked at the wall clock behind the bride-to-be.

11:00.

And it was getting very dark outside.

She turned back to Tifa. "Seriously?"

"We have so much to consult with the everyone." Tifa replied. "I can't decide on my own with these details. I mean, I want to make sure I'm getting the best of options."

The other winced. "Wasn't that what we were doing the _whole_ day?"

Tifa took a deep breath. "I know, I'm sorry Quistis. But we have so much choices, so much possibilities I want to happen. I just want this to be exactly how I imagined it would be."

Quistis massaged her temple. "Tifa, do you even know how you want it to be?"

Tifa raised her eyebrows and shrugged. "Perfect."

Quistis threw her head back, a grunt almost escaped her. "Hyne, Tifa…"

"I know, I know." Tifa brushed her hair back with both hands. "Look, I promise, all I need is Rinoa and the rest of the girls. I just need their opinion. I'll itemize everything with a list and it will be easier for us to choose for each."

Quistis sighed, pursing her lips as she looked at Tifa incredulously. "Right. Why do I have a feeling it's going to be a long day tomorrow."

"Just, go home for now, Quistis, and get some rest." Tifa gathered the planner and the rest of the brochures that didn't fit with the compilation. "We'll finish this tomorrow."

"Okay. But don't expect me to be early tomorrow." Quistis replied while she gathered her purse and her phone.

Tifa shot her a look. "Be here before lunch! I need you."

"Okaaaay."

The front door creaked open and both of them looked up to see Squall entering. He looked at them blankly, slowly closing the door behind him. Quistis tore her eyes away from him and focused on fixing nothing inside her purse.

"Squall!" Tifa greeted with an excited smile. "Did you find our caterer?"

"Yeah." Squall replied. "We went to Yusnaan for it."

Quistis' ears perked up. _We?_ she wondered. _Squall wasn't alone in his search for the wedding caterer?_

And then she remembered— there was, in fact, a maid of honor.

"Wow. That's a little too far. What about Trabia?" Tifa inquired further.

Squall leaned himself against a wall and placed his hands in his pockets. "They were too pricey, way beyond the reasonable range."

"No discounts?"

"Only for 'young' couples." Squall recalled. "They mistook us as one, but Rinoa denied it."

Tifa laughed. "You two? A couple? You should have just said yes and be done with it!"

Quistis could feel her grip tightening around the handle of her bag.

"That's what I told Rinoa." Squall replied. "But she said it would be cheating."

"I gotta go now." Quistis cut in, adjusting the strap of her purse against her shoulder. She nodded goodbye at Tifa and made a beeline past Squall without looking at him, whose eyes were also diverted from her. Once she was outside, she took deep, sharp breaths, exhaling white puffs of the cold air.

Squall was willing to play pretend as a husband-to-be with Rinoa? Ultemecia would surrender herself to the SeeDs first before that could ever happen. But then again, it was for the sake of getting a caterer in such a short time which sounded like a challenge to both Rinoa and Squall. But the mental image of them together in their search ached Quistis right in the chest and her head felt like it was losing its screws. She didn't know if it was because Squall seemed to be more comfortable with Rinoa who he just met the night before, or was it because the pair made much more sense than she could ever make.

"It's over." she whispered to herself as she walked along the sidewalk, watching her feet as she did. Whatever chance she had with Squall was over. All the dreams, possibilities, hopes of being with Squall, gone. When boys started wooing her and even founded a ridiculous fan club in the Garden just for her, she thought it wouldn't be a challenge to get Squall's attention. But he would just pass them by, ignoring them, and she could swear she felt the embarrassment from his unspoken thoughts. It was never easy to read Squall, and she never understood why it attracted her to him so. She never intended to hurt herself over and over this way.

* * *

The next day came and nobody went to Tifa's before lunch.

Waking up at 10:00 in the morning, Rinoa expected that some of the girls would have already been at Tifa's house doing the wedding planning without her. She took her time preparing, and even had a good chat with Cid over their late breakfast.

"Why are you still here?" she asked her stepbrother, chewing a bite of her egg sandwich.

Cid smirked. "Offsetting."

"Offsetting?"

"I came home late last night. Training took longer than expected. Now I can come in later than required."

She arrived at Tifa's house a little later after lunch, and noticed how it was unexpectedly quiet inside. She rang the doorbell and was greeted by Tifa, still in her white shirt and pyjamas.

"Why are you not ready yet?" Rinoa asked, scanning Tifa.

"Quistis and I finished late last night." Tifa replied before turning around and lazily walking inside the house, leaving Rinoa to show herself in.

Rinoa looked around at the guestless space. "Am I the first?"

"Yeah." Tifa nodded over her shoulder. "But Claire and Serah are on their way."

They turned back around at the sound of a revving engine just outside the door.

"That must be them." Tifa said before yawning. "I'll go get dressed up. Make yourself at home." she added, gesturing at her couch.

Rinoa remained standing, anticipating the arrival of the Strife sisters. Serah greeted her with a half-hug, while Claire nodded at her with a smile.

"No one's here yet, huh." the latter remarked.

Rinoa only pursed her lips and shrugged.

"Is Squall still here?" Serah asked.

Rinoa shook her head. "I don't know, I haven't seen him yet."

"Cloud should be with him, they have errands to do. Maybe they already left." Claire replied.

"What errands?" her sister asked.

"Who knows."

A moment passed before Serah spoke again. "Do you want some coffee or tea? I'm going to make some." she offered while on her way into the kitchen.

"Coffee, please." Rinoa replied, slightly raising her hand.

"Tea for me." Claire followed.

Several minutes later, Selphie entered with Aerith in tow, followed by Quistis who went straight into the kitchen clutching a big brown paper bag without greeting Rinoa. Serah came out with pots of coffee and tea in a tray, and Claire following behind her carrying the empty white cups. Rinoa offered her help, but was declined by the sisters. Aerith and Selphie chatted with her about Squall's talent in negotiating.

"He's always the talented one." said Selphie. "In Balamb Garden, we trust his word more than we trust our instructors'. Too bad he doesn't talk as much."

"Yeah, he doesn't seem like the type. I was the one doing all the talking when we were in Trabia." Rinoa responded.

"It's a long story why Squall acts the way he does." Claire commented while placing the cups at the center of the coffee table.

Serah placed the tray beside the cups. "Not that long, actually. Basically, when his mother and stepsister died in a bombing incident, he kinda just stopped talking."

Rinoa's eyes widened and she placed a hand over her mouth. That was definitely something she wasn't expecting. "Oh Hyne…"

Serah nodded and took a sit on the couch between Claire and Rinoa. "It was worse when we were kids. Everyday he would sit on his porch, waiting for his mom and sister. When they never came, he locked himself up in his room. Uncle Laguna had to call us everyday to visit and cheer Squall up."

"Uncle Laguna is…?"

"His dad." Aerith replied.

Serah continued. "Eventually he began to start talking and, finally, smiling. Uncle Laguna thought Squall is happier and healthier with us than he is with him. He always encourages Squall to go hang out with us more often."

"Doesn't he get lonely without his son around?" Rinoa asked.

Claire turned to look at Rinoa, surprised at her question. "Uncle Laguna always had Kiros and Ward. They usually go around together to advocate their cause against terrorism."

"And they are?"

"His former comrades when he was still a soldier."

"Wow, you guys came from a family of soldiers." Rinoa place an index finger against her lips. "Which reminds me. Where are you parents?"

Serah shrugged and was about to answer when Quistis entered the room with a plate of steaming hot buns. She placed it on the coffee table next to the pots.

"Yaaay!" Selphie immediately grabbed a piece and took a big bite.

Quistis grinned, taking a piece herself. "Fresh from the Dincht Bakery."

"Zell?" Rinoa asked. Quistis slightly nodded wordlessly, her eyes diverted from Rinoa's.

"I especially like his mom's hotdog buns." said Aerith.

"Half of them are cheese buns, half are hotdog buns." Quistis added.

"I got one hotdog bun!" Serah exclaimed excitedly.

"Are you guys starting without me?" Tifa called at them teasingly while climbing down the stairs.

"And we're not going to leave you some!" Selphie declared sharply.

Tifa chuckled. "Anyway, I'm sorry I'm late."

"We are, too." Aerith replied for the group.

Tifa stood in front of them held up the flyers she and Quistis collected the day before. "We are starting with these."

"And those are?"

"Our options for dresses, wedding cake, host, band, rings, venues for the shower and the rehearsal dinner." Tifa placed the brochures on the table before sitting down.

Quistis swallowed a bite of her bun. "We already have a venue, and we're assigning the flowers to Aerith."

"Yep!" Aerith replied.

"We also have the caterer, care of Squall and Rinoa." Tifa added.

"I can't believe Squall had to wink for that!" Selphie said in her giggles. She didn't notice how Quistis' head sharply turned to her.

"Wink?" Quistis asked.

"Yeah, Rinoa told us how Squall had to wink at one of the owners so she would give them the discounted package." Serah replied.

Rinoa also began to laugh softly at the memory.

Quistis shook her head at the ridiculousness of it. Squall would never do something like that. "Anyway," she said a bit loudly, placing her planner on the table. "Some of these options are up to Tifa and Cloud. Like the ring."

Tifa leaned down on the table and gathered the pages. "So that leaves you guys the wedding cake, the dresses, the wedding band and the singer, and the program."

"Oh, and the shower and the rehearsal dinner." Quistis quickly pointed.

"Will there be a stag party too?" Selphie asked.

"No, it's going to be a joint shower." Claire replied. "All guests from both sides are welcome."

Tifa sat up and looked around. "By the way, have you guys seen Squall?"

"I thought he already left with Cloud?" Serah replied.

"No, he's here. He woke up before I did." said Tifa.

"Oh c'mon Tifa. Like, are you still not used to him? You have to coax him out if you want him to leave his space." said Selphie.

Serah stood up. "I'll go get him."

Claire quickly grabbed Serah's wrist. "No. Let him. If he wants to enjoy his space, then so be it."

Rinoa shivered at the coldness in her voice. Carefully, she opened her purse and, without taking her phone out, texted Squall.

" **Squall, Claire is looking for you.** "

Not even a minute later, they heard footsteps thumping down the stairs.

"Oh!" said Tifa. "Speaking of!"

Claire turned around and raised an eyebrow at Squall, who frowned back before looking away.

"Heya, Squall!" Selphie greeted.

"I thought Cloud gave you errands to do." said Serah.

"He changed his mind." Squall replied, squeezing himself next to Rinoa. "He called Seifer to go with him instead."

Quistis couldn't help but steal glances of Squall and Rinoa together, wondering why he chose the tight space on the edge of the couch beside Rinoa when she had larger ones on either side.

While Aerith, Claire, and Selphie talked about the joint-shower event, Squall gave Rinoa a sideway look. "Thanks." he whispered.

Rinoa raised her eyebrows, curious at his sudden expression of gratitude. "Hmm? For what?"

"For the warning." Squall replied.

Rinoa giggled and leaned in closer to his ear. "Claire kind of scared me when they began looking for you. I thought it was only fair to give you a heads-up."

"What do they want from us this time?" he asked, maintaining his low voice.

"I think we're here to talk about the other things we still need to deal with." Rinoa whispered back.

"Like what?"

"Like the joint shower, if you weren't listening." Quistis snapped at Squall.

Taken aback, everyone paused to look at her, even Squall.

"The problem with you is you barely participate on your own. Do you think you can just leave everything to us?" Quistis barked at him, the intensity of her voice increasing. "Do you think the caterer is the end of it? No, Squall! There are still many things to take care of, and I hate to repeat myself about it, so goodluck finding that out yourself!"

Everyone froze on their spot, looking up at Quistis who was already standing up and glaring down at Squall. Squall glared back at her, while Rinoa's eyes were nervously shifting between him and Quistis.

Then, as if she instantly recovered from her meltdown, Quistis's face softened into shock and looked around her, inhaling sharply as she did. She then excused herself and walked out of the room.

A moment was let to pass before Selphie spoke up. "Uhm, what was that about?"

Claire crossed her arms. "It seems like Quistis is still not over Squall."

"What?" Rinoa dared to ask.

"Quistis confessed to Squall, but he turned her down." Aerith replied sympathetically.

Rinoa turned her head to Squall. "Then why is she still angry, Squall?"

Instead of answering her question, Squall looked away and stood up. "I'm going back to my room. I don't think I'm helping much around here."

Rinoa watched as Squall disappeared back up the stairs and into his small refuge.

Serah furrowed her brows and pursed her lips as she looked at everyone else left in the room.

Tifa sighed deeply. "Right, so," she forced a smile and looked around her. "Should we carry on with the wedding plan?"

Rinoa frowned and tucked her lips on one side. It was unfair, for Tifa especially. Whatever was going on between Squall and Quistis should not get in the way of Tifa's careful planning of her dream wedding. She stood up and took a deep breath.

"You guys go on without me. I'm going to fix this and bring them back!" said Rinoa, raising her right fist in resolution. She could read the relief in Tifa's smile.

Claire, however, scoffed. "Goodluck with that."

"I believe in you, Rinoa!" Selphie said, also standing up and raising her fist. "We're rooting for you! Well, except for Claire. But we're all rooting for you! And we will be right…" she sat back down. "here."

Rinoa blinked and gave them a firm nod before heading upstairs.

Serah watched her curiously before turning to Claire. "She's starting with Squall!" she whispered.

Claire shrugged. "I'd like to think she has a chance."

* * *

Squall was back to his book when he heard a gentle knock on his door. Thinking it was Quistis finding an excuse to talk to him again, he ignored it.

The knock came again and it was becoming more persistent. Quistis sure needed some aggressive reaction for him to get her to stop pestering him.

Throwing his book back to his desk, he stood and opened the door. His anger turned to shock when he saw Rinoa standing in front of him, wearing an annoyed face.

Rinoa scowled. "I've been knocking forever, you know?"

"I was reading. What do you want?"

"I want to talk to you." Rinoa replied. "May I come in?"

Squall held the door open. "Only because you're not Quistis."

"Well," said Rinoa while entering his room. "it _is_ kinda about her."

Squall sat on his swivel chair, leaning his elbows against his knees and looking at Rinoa questioningly.

Rinoa sat on his bed and looked around. Before Tifa's renovation, it was a storage room, and it used to be her favorite hiding place when she and Tifa played hide and seek twelve years ago. It looked different back then, more old-fashioned and dim as opposed to it's current brightly-colored renovation. Now, she had converted it into a guest room which, in Rinoa's honest opinion, was more functional.

The room was empty of things, save for the papers and the books on the desk behind him, but everything else he possessed seemed to be kept inside his luggage, which was neatly placed at one corner of the room. It was small, but not too small for a single person. And considering it was Tifa's guest room, it was beginning to smell like him.

"Why aren't you staying at Claire's?" Rinoa asked.

Squall raised his brows. "Because I'm welcome here. Can't I stay here?"

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant." Rinoa replied nervously, afraid she might have offended him. "I mean, this used to be Tifa's house, and it's all new to me."

"It's not just Tifa's house anymore." Squall corrected. It was true. When Tifa couldn't afford paying for the mortgage of the property, Cloud came to the rescue. That made both of them the legal owners of the house, which luckily worked now that they were actually getting married.

Rinoa smiled and shook her head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound so rude."

"So," Squall cocked his head at Rinoa. "why are you here?"

"Aerith told me what happened to you and Quistis."

Squall raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"I kinda knew it the moment she saw you enter the dining room during the engagement party." Rinoa replied. "She likes you a lot, Squall. No wonder she was acting a little weird around me."

"What?" Squall asked sharply. "What do you mean weird?"

"Like she's…" Rinoa shrugged at the lack of right words. "jealous."

"Why would she be jealous? And since when was that a good reason to act 'weird' around you?" Squall's voice was getting louder and harder, but she remained unshaken.

"I don't know. But. Look, whatever it was, you have to fix it right now. Tifa is getting married in less than two months, and she needs all of us to work together and make her dream wedding happen."

"You don't know what happened between me and Quistis."

"I do know that you broke her heart." Rinoa replied a-matter-of-factly.

"It wasn't my fault."

"Your fault, her fault, whoever it was, you have to fix it!"

"How?" Squall challenged.

"Talk to her!"

"Not gonna happen."

"Well, this isn't about your stubbornness, isn't it?"

Squall could only look at her.

"Your problem with Quistis is never going to end if you don't do something about it. And frankly, it wouldn't be a big deal if there is no wedding to plan right now. But Tifa and Cloud needs everyone's efforts, and that includes you and Quistis." She held out her hand towards the door. "Quistis doesn't seem to be doing a great job at it, and she's too emotional for that right now. I think it's up to you, Squall. Talk to her, tell her you're sorry and why you think it's not going to work out between the two of you. Tell her something, anything… give it a closure."

Squall kept on staring at her. "Closure…" he repeated. It was also what Quistis was asking from him during the engagement dinner.

Rinoa sighed. "Nothing will happen if you don't move." she mumbled while standing up and pulled Squall by his wrist. "C'mon, Squall! Stand up!"

Now glaring at Rinoa, Squall leaned back and pulled his weight _away_ from her.

Rinoa groaned in her struggle from their silly tug-of-war. "I'm not giving up!"

Then, without a warning, Squall decided to stand up.

The result of Rinoa's forceful pull and Squall's sudden lack of force resulted in her drawing him intimately closer, their bodies bouncing against each other as she did. She gasped while he groaned at the sudden collision and, when his steely blue orbs met her brown ones, their eyes synchronously widened from shock. The longer they stared, the warmer their cheeks felt.

Rinoa was the one to pull away first and stiffly turned her back on Squall. "J-just— just talk to Quistis already!" she stammered before opening the door and leaving the other on his flustered state.

* * *

Feeling the wind wash away her embittered and resentful sentiments while sitting on Tifa's bench on her front lawn was just what she needed.

Little by little, Quistis was composing herself from the relapse she experienced earlier. She didn't know why she strongly reacted at the sight of Squall and Rinoa whispering to each other, connecting like nothing else made more sense. Quistis couldn't even get her thoughts straight, which was the most unfamiliar thing to her next to the perception of defeat for not getting what she wanted.

Still lost in her thoughts, she didn't noticed the front door of the house opening behind her. She jerked at the sound of footsteps approaching her and turned to her unexpected companion. She immediately looked the other way when she realized it was Squall. He sighed. Why did girls always turn away like children when he tried to talk to them? Why were they angry at him more often than he wanted?

Squall sat beside her, keeping a safe distance between them. He wasn't sure how to start conversations like this, confrontations were not his thing. Well, doing it without emotional involvement was one thing, it was easier to get it done and over with. But attempting to settle things with someone who obviously had intense feelings for him that he couldn't reciprocate was an unknown and mysterious territory.

He didn't know how long of a moment had passed, having only the rustling of the leaves from the trees and the occasional chirping of the birds filling the silence between them.

"Are you here to say something?" Quistis finally asked. Thank Hyne she started the conversation.

"I'm here to say sorry." Squall replied. It sounded more dissonant than he actually intended.

Quistis' back was still facing him.

He took a deep breath. _Here goes nothing._

"What happened before, when you tried to talk to me. I'm sorry I didn't try to help you clear things up."

She looked over her shoulder for a while before turning around to face him, her face still disheartened and her eyes slightly teary. "Okay. Now I'm listening."

Squall looked at her and shrugged confoundedly. "What else do you want me to say?"

"I don't know. What do _you_ want to tell me? Until now, you were always trying to avoid me ever since that incident. I tried approaching you, but you pushed me away. Sometimes I wish I could just tear your head open to see what's inside your mind, Squall." Quistis was breathing heavily, tears began rolling down her cheeks. "Okay. I'll start. I'm in love with you, Squall."

Squall frowned and pursed his lips, but he didn't look away from Quistis. She wiped her tears away and her eyes fell on her lap. She choked on her next words.

"I had always wished you'd see me the same way, but now I understand that you don't, and probably never will. I don't even think you _like_ me as a person."

Squall pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to the now sobbing Quistis. She looked at him before hesitantly taking it.

Squall's face softened. "Look, it's not like I hate you. Things just feel awkward when you're around. It's not easy when someone tried to kiss you, and you just pulled away like it didn't matter. I may be annoyed, and that's the truth. And I'm sorry that I can't… love you back. I don't even know how that works, to be honest. But it doesn't mean I don't like you."

Quistis nodded strenuously, a little hurt at his straightforward words. But they were as she had expected from him. "Okay. At least we have established that we could still remain friends, right?"

Squall nodded. "Yeah."

Quistis nodded. "Okay." She tore away from his handkerchief and looked at him. "Then, I promise I won't make things awkward anymore."

Squall gave her a small smile. "Then I'll promise to be your friend."

Quistis smiled back and laughed. "That sounds great."

Squall nodded before standing up. "We should go back. I think they need us inside."

"Okay." Quistis stood up, still wiping some of her leftover tears. She glanced up at Squall again. "By the way."

Squall turned at her curiously.

"There's… someone else, is it?"

Squall mused on the thought. _I'm not even sure about it…_

"Is it… Aerith?" Quistis asked mindfully.

A slight chuckle escaped Squall as he looked bashfully on the ground. So she noticed, or did she know him too well to see through him?

"No." he answered truthfully. "I guess, not anymore."

Quistis stared at him, slowly forming a knowing smile. "I guess you're right."

* * *

 **Author's Note** : I SWEAR SEPHIROTH WILL BE INVOLVED IN THIS FIC! Squall and Quistis just needed to settle some issues, so I allowed them. Besides, this is a Squinoa fic! But if you're looking for Sephiroth, just stay tuned for the next chapters! A BIG THANK YOU FOR EVERYONE WHO READ AND REVIEWED!


	5. The Bridal Flowers

**Disclaimer** : Anything that is not mine, is not mine. The game, the characters, they are not mine. The concept of the story is mine, but the elements added that were not originally mine, are definitely not mine. I hope that's enough disclaimer!

* * *

Squall scrunched up his nose while shifting the gear to park in front of Rinoa's house, his windows halfway opened. Whatever it was in the flowers was slowly creeping up into his nose and bringing slight tears to his eyes. If only it wasn't for Claire who so kindly asked him to bring Aerith's flowers samples to Rinoa, he wouldn't even bother.

"You want me to bring these to Rinoa?" Squall asked with incredulity.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Weren't you listening?"

"I know Tifa wants Rinoa to see the samples." Squall snappily replied. "But why do you want me to drive there with these?" he pointed at the bundled primroses on the dining table with his eyes. Why indeed when she could just come over at Tifa's house like she always did? Of all circumstances when he could drive to Rinoa's, it had to be at the most inconvenient when he was to carry a bulky amount of flowers that gave him the runny nose.

Claire crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows at Squall.

Squall responded with a frown, as if to ask her "what?"

"Give Rinoa some rest, Squall." Claire said. "It's your turn to hit the road."

Squall blinked and slid his hands into his pockets, choosing to stay silent in his protest but Claire caught on.

"Aren't male SeeDs taught how to be gentlemen from time to time?" she challenged.

Squall huffed and rolled his eyes. He swooped the flowers from the table and began to head for the door. "I'm not complaining."

"Thought so." Claire replied coldly.

And the groom didn't help either when he passed by him outside.

"Going to Rinoa's?" Cloud asked, wiping his huge motorcycle dry with a yellow absorbent cloth.

Squall pressed the unlock button to Claire's maroon sedan. "Claire made me."

Cloud grinned impishly. "Rinoa's uncle is Sephiroth, by the way."

Squall paused and gave him a questioning look. He had heard of this Sephiroth for countless of times from Cloud's stories of his perpetual frustrations in his years of work at Shinra. "General Sephiroth?"

"Yup." Cloud replied. "And her legal guardian, apparently."

"How did you know?"

"Ran to him back at work, berated me for allowing Rinoa to stay up late at the engagement party."

"What did Tifa say?"

"She didn't know that I know." Cloud replied. "Not yet anyway. I'm waiting for her to tell me."

"What do you mean?"

"Sephiroth knows her. Imagine how a parent would know their daughter's best friend."

Squall stood silently by the door to the driver's seat, waiting for his cousin to elaborate further, but he never did. Cloud had always been straightforward one way or another, and it was intriguing why he was suddenly secretive about simple and ridiculously shallow things like this. Sephiroth may be his rival, but Tifa was his fiance. Shouldn't he be telling her everything? And why would he need to wait for Tifa to tell him?

"So," Cloud shrugged. "goodluck."

 _Yeah, you too._ Squall mentally replied.

Back at Rinoa's, Squall pressed the doorbell and heard Rinoa's hurried voice asking someone to open it for her. He straightened up as soon as he heard footsteps approaching, adjusting the flowers on his right arm. When the knob turned and the door opened, he was met by a towering muscular man with silver hair that almost touched the ground. His face was the most bloodthirsty he had seen, and his features as sharp as the edge of his gunblade. Somewhere, he could hear an intensified orchestral music that forewarned terror and danger.

 _This must be Sephiroth._

The man's deep voice growled against his throat as he examined Squall from head to toe. "Are you Squall?"

Squall almost gulped but he maintained his posture. "Yes, Sir."

"Strife's cousin?"

Squall thought for a second. "Yes, Sir."

The man's green orbs travelled to the primroses in his arm and Squall nearly threw them away.

Sephiroth grunted another "Hmm…" when he met Squall's vision in scrutiny. Squall could swear he spelled death in the man's eyes.

He didn't know what happened after or how he made it past through Sephiroth alive, but the next thing he knew, he was sitting on a couch in a living room, the flowers still in his hands. Sephiroth was sitting on a cushioned chair right across his, a silver sword as long as he was in one hand and a block sharpener in another. His throat felt dry as the repeated sounds of the block sliding against the metal pierced through his ears, but he tried to remain unshaken. At least until Rinoa's uncle stopped giving him that look.

Squall shifted uneasily on his chair and silently thanked Hyne for the warm weather that covered for the sweat trickling down his forehead. The heavy silence wasn't helping either, but talking was clearly neither man's favorite hobby.

 _Isn't Rinoa ready yet?_

Sephiroth's eyes briefly tore away from him when he flipped his sword and began sliding the block along the other side of his blade. Squall couldn't understand why the man was so adamant in sharpening his sword when the metal was smooth as it could be, and the edge could slice the microparticles in the air. Sephiroth wasn't even watching what he was doing– his eyes were fixed at Squall instead, shooting meteors into his poor soul.

"Hi Squall!" Rinoa called while taking the last step down from the staircase. Squall jumped from the couch and stood up. He didn't even hear the sound of her footsteps against the wooden floors, but that wasn't even important– the air was getting a little drafty and he was just glad she finally arrived. She turned to Sephiroth. "Uncle Seph, this this Squall, the best man. Squall, my Uncle Seph."

"Pleased to meet you, Sir." Squall held out his hand.

"Pleasure." Sephiroth said gruffly as he responded to the friendly gesture.

Rinoa looked at his cargo. "Oh! You brought some flowers! Thanks!" she took the primroses from Squall's hand and laid them out on the table to observe. "You know, I've been browsing through flower arrangement ideas I found online, and I saw some that Tifa might like. I'm sure Aerith have better ideas since, you know, flowers are her specialty."

Squall didn't (read: couldn't) respond and let Rinoa ramble on her thoughts about the damned primroses. Sephiroth's jaws tightened and his eyes narrowed at the sight of his niece holding flowers that didn't come from himself.

"I took the liberty of picking this arrangement. What do you think Squall?" Rinoa asked after playing with the flowers.

Her partner for the wedding nodded at her poor attempt to create a rounded bouquet that didn't even pass as a mock-up arrangement.

"I think it's great." he replied under her uncle's scrutinizing look.

Rinoa blinked a few times in disbelief. Did he just compliment her work? She gave a cheerful "thank you" anyway before gathering the flowers in her arms. "I think Aerith will need to see this first before we show Tifa, though."

"Yes, I think so too." Squall replied hurriedly.

"Uncle Seph," Rinoa called. "we're going to Aerith's to fix Tifa's flower arrangements." she said while slipping her purse up her shoulder with her free hand.

Sephiroth's face quickly softened as he stood up. "Okay. You take care." He said while heading for the door.

"See you later!" Rinoa beamed while stepping out of the house.

"Try to be home before dark."

"Okay!"

Squall was following behind when his path was blocked by something sharp and silver. Stiffly but keeping his cool, he turned to look at Sephiroth.

"I don't know what kind of escapade you have with my niece." he said, almost growling. "But if anything _unpleasant_ happens to her, I'll make sure you get what you deserve down there." he cocked his head towards Squall's lower regions.

Squall gulped for the first time in a long one. "Don't worry, Sir. I'll make sure that won't happen."

Sephiroth slightly nodded and lowered his sword with a _shing_. Squall nodded back and proceeded outside. As he opened the passenger's seat for Rinoa, he could still observe Sephiroth from his peripheral vision wiping his sword with some sort of cloth, watching them. He then entered through the driver's seat and sped away.

He almost forgot he had the runny nose.

* * *

Squall thought the bouquet in Rinoa's arms was already bad, but Aerith's flower shop was even worse.

The blossom particles hit his nose not even before they pushed the door open. Squall sneezed as soon as the pollens escaped the confinements of the shop and blew to his face. He was surprised how Rinoa was unaffected by all of these, and he wondered if all women were made to withstand the wrath of the flowers.

Rinoa on the other hand inspected the orchids that hung from the glass ceiling that allowed the sunlight through. Turning around, she spotted another group of pots of sunflowers and poppies basking in the sun by the glass windows, their colors adding a delightful accent to the white primroses that dominated the place.

"Hi! You made it!" Aerith greeted while leaving her floral counter and approached the pair. Rinoa smiled in greeting observing roses of different colors in the shelves behind their owner, not noticing Squall's sniffles behind her.

"I'm going outside." Squall said in a strained voice.

Rinoa gave him a concerned look. "You okay?"

"Yeah, no… the flowers." Squall replied unintelligibly, opening the door to freedom.

"I have some antihistamines for customers like you." Aerith said. She opened a drawer from one of her cabinets and produced a small white tablet. She handed it to Squall.

"I don't want to get dizzy."

"They won't, I promise."

Squall looked at the tablet before taking it. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." Aerith replied with a smile so beautiful that all the emotions he thought he forgot came flooding back to him. Squall stared at her for a moment before forcing a nod and exiting the shop.

But that didn't escape Rinoa.

She eyed him as he walked out, wondering why he suddenly lost grip of his mask… again. She turned around and noticed that Aerith was oblivious of Squall's moment of vulnerability. Rinoa smiled back at her and handed the rounded bouquet she arranged back at her house. "I'm not really good at it, but…"

Aerith giggled clemently as she examined the drooping petals of the disheveled bundle. "No, this is fine. I kind of get what you meant."

"Oh, and I saved some pictures that could give us some inspiration." Rinoa said, pulling her phone out of her purse and opening photos that she saved from a wedding website. She swiped until she spotted the one with an arc of primroses and pillars with vines of pale pink roses wrapped around them. She handed her phone to Aerith and gave her a moment to survey it before she spoke again. "What do you think?"

"It looks a little more complicated than my usual works, but," Aerith zoomed into the photo to explore every detail of it. She finally nodded. "it's very intricate, but definitely workable."

"Instead of all white," Rinoa mused. "I was thinking we could do a combination of peach and white. I don't want to let go of the primroses."

Aerith nodded. "Those are Tifa's favorites. But I'm not sure about the peach color."

Rinoa shrugged. "I don't think Tifa would mind the peach." she said. "We can always do other colors, like purple. No, let's make it lavender. Lavender-colored roses. Do you think you can do roses and primroses at the same time?"

"Yeah, I can." Aerith handed Rinoa's phone back to her. She then turned around to her counter and took out two vases of roses from her shelf: one with light purple color and one peach. She placed them beside Rinoa's bouquet of primroses and examined the combination. "I like the purple one better."

"Yeah." Rinoa agreed. "It contrasts well with the white. It looks more wedding-like."

"I was also thinking we can use these to make floral headpieces for the bridal party."

"I think that's a great idea." Rinoa replied honestly. "Tifa would love that too."

"We should show Tifa first before I start working so we can also decide on the final arrangements of the flowers."

"And the wreaths."

Aerith nodded. "Are you guys going back to her place?"

"Probably. Are you coming?"

"I will, but I might wait for Zack first."

"Okay. Speaking of which," she tipped her head to the door. "I think I should go out and check on Squall."

* * *

"That's five gil."

Squall handed the merchant his payment for the bottled water he needed for the anti-allergy. He crossed the street back to the front lawn of Aerith's place and gulped the medicine down. The streets was still lit by the afternoon sun, and the breeze carried fallen leaves to the other side of the place. His time alone felt perfect, it was just what he needed after the shaky start of his day, and Aerith that rattled him again.

"Squall?"

He turned around at the voice and saw Rinoa standing behind him. "Hey. You done?"

Rinoa shook her head. "No. I don't think so."

Squall slid one hand in his pocket and the bottle dangled in the other. "You should probably wrap it up soon. I don't want to wait until dark to bring you home."

Rinoa opened her mouth to ask him why until she remembered. "Oh. That." she giggled. "Uncle Seph was just saying that, he always does. I can stay until we've finalized what to do with the flowers."

Squall gave her a look as if to say "are you sure?"

"Don't worry about it, Squall." she laughed. "Are you scared of my Uncle Sephy?"

Squall scoffed. "I don't want to relive it."

Rinoa laughed again.

A moment passed between them, both taking all the fresh air in before she started again. "What's up with you and Aerith?"

Squall's expression hardened. Was he really easy to read that Quistis and Rinoa correctly guessed about Aerith?

Rinoa leaned forward to take a peek of Squall's face. "I know you have a lot of secrets, Squall. But some of them don't really have to be."

"They are secrets for a good reason."

"Reason?" Rinoa asked. She then straightened up. "Hmm… I wonder what reason could that be."

"None of your business."

"I guess not." she said. "But seeing how you're just keeping them all inside made me think if you need some help pulling them out before you burst."

"I'm not going to burst." he replied sternly.

She shrugged. "Okay."

He was tempted to ask "okay what?", but he didn't intend to make the conversation any longer.

Rinoa, on the other hand, wanted to ask more questions, but she let the silence speak for Squall. He clearly didn't want to talk about it, and she didn't want to pry. She only wanted to check on him and see if he was still doing fine from his bout of allergies, which he seemed to feel better from the moment the flowers were out of the way. She was about to head back inside when a black jeep pulled over beside Claire's car and out came Zack.

"Oh, hey!" Zack waved at them, and they both gave a small wave back. "You're both here!" He jogged to them, removing his sunglasses as he did. "What are you both doing outside?"

"Squall was having the allergies from the flowers." Rinoa replied. "I just went out to check on him."

Zack pressed his mouth into a thin line. "Do you want me to get you antihistamines?"

"Thanks, Aerith already gave me one." Squall replied.

"Okay. Feeling better?"

"Yeah. Thanks."

"Okay." Zack looked at the door briefly before turning back to them. "Well, I'll go ahead inside and see what Aerith needs. You should too, Rinoa."

Rinoa smiled and nodded. "I will in a while."

She waited until Zack disappeared through the door before turning to Squall. "Well, I wanna know what that guy did that you didn't."

Squall shot her a glare.

"I would guess he was more…" she shrugged. "Conversational?"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Oh, and less grumpy." Rinoa pulled a playful smirk. "Or not grumpy at all. Or maybe he was confident."

Squall grunted and looked away.

"That's it, right? He's more confident."

Squall waved his hand dismissively. "Whatever."

Rinoa made a knowing "oh" like she discovered a new galaxy in the infinite universe. "You worry about what people think of you."

"Are you studying me like one of your students?"

"Correction!" she pointed a finger at him. "I'm not a teacher yet and I have no students. I may be getting there, but still not quite there. And don't change the subject."

"I'm not." he replied.

Rinoa placed her hands on her hips. "You act a little too cool, Squall. Holding back won't make up for your self-doubt."

"What do you know about self-doubt?" Squall challenged. "Just because you're confident, doesn't mean everyone can be. I always end up alone, and that wasn't easy. Confidence didn't help me become stronger."

That came out a little harsh for Rinoa, but she had to remind herself that it was Squall she was speaking to. She took in a deep breath. "You may be right. But it cost you the chance to be with someone who was clearly important. Now she's with someone else who is confident and, frankly, stronger. Besides, how would you know whether or not she likes you if you don't know what to like about yourself?"

She got his full attention. Now that he thought about it, aside from his learned skills as a mercenary that earned him recognitions from the Garden, he didn't know what else was there in him to see. He walked to a nearby tree and leaned his back against it. "What is there to like?"

"Well," Rinoa tilted her head thoughtfully. "I don't know, but Quistis definitely saw a lot."

He scoffed again. "And how about you?" he asked as if to dare her. "What do you see?"

"Hmm…" Rinoa placed an index finger on her lips musingly. "I see someone who is sharp, smart, and brave."

"Brave?"

"At certain situations, yes." she said. "Especially when things are needed to be done. Or you become brave for someone else."

"We were taught how to be brave in the Garden."

She shrugged. "Maybe." she said. "But I know many other brave people, like my uncle and my stepbrother. As far as I know, they would never go out of their way to get things done. Like, you know, winking at a stubborn merchant or talking to a rejected lover."

"You make it sound so poetic."

"It's true!" she asserted. "And I've only known you for less than a week and I can come up with good qualities about you. Imagine what Aerith has to say."

"Too late for that." he said. "Too late to care."

"Yeah, it's too late for that. But that's beside the point, isnt' it?"

Rinoa caught his eyes with hers, and Squall stared for a moment, seeking for answers.

"Learning to like yourself." she said. "That's what's more important."

* * *

Aerith's petite house stood behind her flower shop where they were welcomed to join her and Zack for a snack. Squall sat by Rinoa who fumbled through the herbed chicken and peas with her fork. Zack sat across him, waiting for Aerith to bring in more plates.

"You guys have this for a snack?" Rinoa asked in disbelief. "This could pass as dinner!"

"Aerith won't have anything lighter for snacks." Zack replied. "It always has to be at least 200 worth of calories."

"Why?"

Zack chuckled. "She hates not getting enough food."

Before Rinoa could say anything else, Aerith entered the room with two more plates in her hands. Zack stood up and quickly took them from her before placing them on the table.

"So how did you guys meet?" Rinoa asked once Aerith and Zack settled on their chairs.

The couple looked at each other and smiled. Squall knew the story, but he listened anyway.

"We met through Cloud at one of his small get-togethers. Aerith was Cloud's friend and I was his officemate and his usual partner in missions. He introduced us over popcorn." Zack replied.

"So what do you like about Aerith?" Rinoa asked before taking a bite of the chicken breast.

Squall did his best to conceal his eager need to know the answer while maintaining his composure.

" _I'm curious though," Rinoa asked. "What do you like about Aerith?"_

" _Hmm…" Squall looked up to the pale blue sky and pondered on his memories of Aerith from the moment he met her until the present time. "She's attractive, admirable, smart, and nice, I guess. Seeing her makes me worry more about what I am, and I don't know why."_

" _Maybe because you think she's better than you."_

" _Maybe. Who knows?"_

Zack gazed at Aerith in contemplation, her eyes met his once again. "I don't know why I love her." he replied. "I just, you know, do."

Aerith's sweet giggle made Rinoa's heart melt for Zack's answer.

Squall, on the other hand, thought it didn't make any sense. _Is that even possible?_ he thought. _Not knowing why he loves her? And Aerith likes it?_

Rinoa meant to throw the question to Aerith next, but figured there was a big chance she would answer with the same perfect response. Instead, she raised her glass in cheers. "Here's to love."

"Here's to love." the couple lifted their glasses of water as well and even Squall joined them, albeit wordlessly.

"Hey, after this," Zack said after taking a sip from his glass. "we should check out the new fries stall around the corner."

"I love fries!" Aerith chirped.

"I know." Zack said softly, nuzzling his nose through her hair.

Rinoa caught Squall smiling at the sight of the couple and nudged at him. He stiffened and shot her a questioning look. She smiled knowingly instead, and he smiled back again.

* * *

After they have finished their meal, they stepped and headed for the newly-propped streetfood stall one block away. Zack and Aerith reached the place first and fell in line while Squall and Rinoa followed behind.

He now knew that there were things beyond him that he simply couldn't give Aerith. Zack was the proof of that. He loved Aerith in a way he couldn't understand, and she gave it right back to him without reservations. If he thought Aerith was brightening his day, she made Zack's perfect. They complimented each other. They were happy.

That was too deep for Squall.

The image of Aerith and Zack in the background blurred against the bluish illumination of dusk when he snapped out of his thoughts and his eyes fell on Rinoa.

"C'mon Squall," she called. "the line is getting longer!"

"Coming." he called back, taking bigger steps towards her. She pulled him by the wrist, and he began to wonder in panic if he had enough money to treat her some fries. At least to make up for tolerating his reluctance to open up.

Even then, she didn't know how much load she lifted off his shoulders from the pep talk he never knew he needed. Rinoa made him feel warm. Comfortable. Confident. Despite his day's rough start, she was able to end it like nothing else mattered. The haze that fogged the future began to slowly disappear and suddenly, he wasn't alone anymore.

He couldn't understand that either.

* * *

 **A/N:** If you noticed on my fic, there are lots and lots of food involved. That's because all the weddings I've been to had PLENTY of food. I really earned some extra few pounds from those. **Oh, and please review. I'd really like to know what you think!**


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